Posts tagged with 'Department of Health'

 

Biggest scam in SA history discovered involving medical malpractice lawsuits – state lawyers robbed SA blind of nearly R80 bn

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A report in Sunday Times reveals that a furious Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has uncovered possibly one of the greatest scams of state funds in South African history.

According to the paper, government is investigating collusion between people suing government hospitals for malpractice and state attorneys who either settle cases that have no merit whatsoever or defend the cases so badly that they invariably lose.

Estimates put the cost at more than R80 billion in a large-scale scam that began at least six years ago and is concentrated on hospitals in the Eastern Cape – although the practice occurs nationwide.

The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) is now probing how several state attorneys allegedly receive kickbacks from claimants’ lawyers in return for intentionally bungling cases.

Justice Minister Michael Masutha and Motsoaledi confirmed to the Sunday Times that the scams are so entrenched that the state has lost at least R60 billion since 2013 in
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Doctors Sound Alarm That SA Mental Healthcare Is Collapsing

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While almost all the previous Life Esidimeni psychiatric patients have been transferred from the NGOs in Gauteng back into hospitals, a group of doctors have warned that the psychiatric structure in South Africa is collapsing.

Reports reveal that in some mental health hospitals there are no psychiatrists, and none of the provinces have organised community-based psychiatric services at present. The South African Society of Psychiatrists (SASOP) said even 150 days after the Health Ombudsman released a report, many hospitals were still facing a shortage of staff with minimal resources.

The president of the SASOP, Professor Bernard Janse van Rensburg, told Health24 that South Africa’s healthcare system is totally fragmented and broken. “Esidimeni was just the tip of the iceberg,” he said. At the beginning of this year, Health Ombudsman Professor Malegapuru Makgoba said the death toll of mentally ill patients who were transferred from Life Esidimeni to 27 NGOs w
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Gauteng hospital shock – More than 20‚000 patients harmed due to negligence

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Gauteng Health MEC Gwen Ramokgopa has confirmed that more than 20‚000 patients have been harmed due to negligence in the space of two-and-a-half years at state hospitals in Gauteng.

Ramokgopa quoted the figure in a written response to questions posed in the Gauteng Legislature by Democratic Alliance MPL Jack Bloom.

When patients are harmed unintentionally‚ by an act of commission or omission rather than their underlying illness or condition‚ the incidents are recorded as “Serious Adverse Events”. There have been 20‚417 of these incidents in the province since 2016‚ to date.

“Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital is the most dangerous hospital for patients in Gauteng‚ with 4‚320 recorded (incidents)‚” Bloom said in a statement on Monday.

Ramokgopa confirmed that the cases were‚ broadly speaking‚ related to “allegations of negligence‚ incompetence of staff members‚ human errors‚ secondment of patients and system failure”.

A
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Kliniek in Limpopo het glo geen medisyne vir diabete

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Geen antibiotika, hoesstroop of medisyne vir diabete nie.

Dit is van die skoktoestande waarop Lindy Wilson, nasionale DA-woordvoerder, Donderdag op ’n oorsigbesoek aan die Waterval-kliniek in die Vhembe-distrik, Limpopo, afgekom het.

Dit is ondanks 95% van die begroting van die hospitaal wat gebruik word om salarisse te betaal.

Sy het ook die Elim-hospitaal in die distrik besoek wat deur die nasionale departement van gesondheid as ’n loodsprojek vir die beoogde Nasionale Gesondheidsversekeringsplan (NGV) geoormerk is.

“Die NGV is nie lewensvatbaar nie. Hoe kan dit werk as ’n loodsprojek van die NGV misluk het?” wou sy weet.

Die Elim-hospitaal, wat 108 jaar oud is, het ernstige probleme met infrastruktuur en die dak val inmekaar.

Pfuluwani Matdozi, uitvoerende hoof van die hospitaal, het aan Wilson gesê daar is ’n groot tekort aan verpleegsters en dokters.

“Dit is ondanks 95% van die begroting van die hospitaal wat gebruik word om sal
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Health MEC ‘putting band aid on gaping wound of oncology crisis’

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The DA in KwaZulu-Natal on Sunday renewed its call for Health MEC Sibongiseni Dhlomo to be fired, saying it appears he is “trying to put a band aid on a large gaping wound” in respect of the province’s oncology crisis.

The DA had been advised by the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) that Dhlomo had met the latest in a series of deadlines in terms of its recommendations required to address the province’s cancer crisis, DA MPL Imran Keeka said.

This followed the SAHRC’s release of a damning report in June which found Dhlomo and his department guilty of violating the rights of KwaZulu-Natal cancer patients by failing to provide proper access to treatment.

Keeka said the DA had received a copy of the MEC’s submissions from the SAHRC, which the party was currently assessing.

“On the face of it, it appears that the MEC is trying to put a band aid on a large gaping wound, with the proposals providing little in the way of concrete steps to
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NHI white paper issues raised – National Health Insurance

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The two fundamental issues with the new white paper on National Health Insurance (NHI) are a single payer fund and the nationalisation of private healthcare without compensation.

Single payer fund

In terms of the single payer fund, the white paper believes that the NHI can use bulk purchasing power to drive down the price of healthcare services. However, it then simultaneously declares that it will accredit medical service providers – public and private – and then set the prices at which they can sell their services to the NHI. It specifically states that it will deploy a “uniform reimbursement strategy” and that accredited service providers will not be allowed to deviate from that.

This raises a fundamental question. If the NHI is going to regulate the price at which the services are being procured, why does it need to use the bulk purchasing power of a single fund to reduce prices?

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Just how competitive is South Africa’s private healthcare sector?

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After a four and a half year probe initiated by South Africa’s Competition Commission, a panel of independent experts released their preliminary report into the country’s private healthcare market.

The Conversation Africa spoke to Sharon Fonn, who was on the panel of experts, about the report.

Why was a market inquiry set up?

The inquiry was set up because private healthcare and medical scheme cover is expensive in South Africa. Costs continue to rise and fewer people can afford it. People who have health insurance find that the scheme covers less care and they often have to pay out of pocket.
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Eerste tenders vir omstrede nasionale gesondheidsversekering uitgereik

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Die eerste tenders vir die omstrede nasionale gesondheidsversekering (NGV) is uitgereik.

Die departement van gesondheid soek voorstelle van die private sektor oor hoe om vyf programme – sommiges wat tans katastrofies deur staatshospitale behartig word – reg te ruk.

Net drie van die land se grootste administrateurs van mediese fondse het opgedaag vir die inligtingsessie om sake te gesels, verneem Rapport.

Kundiges het in reaksie gesê dié NGV-planne lyk glad nie soos die ideologiese prentjie van ’n funksionerende geïntegreerde gesondheidsdiens vir almal nie, maar is eerder ’n uitkontraktering van bestaande pligte van die staat teen bykomende koste.

Die regering soek private maatskappy om onder meer die volgende te doen:

* Bestralingsdienste vir kankerpasiënte: Luiden
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Shortage of pathologists an inconvenience to families

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Post-mortems are mandatory to determine the cause of death. The shortage of pathologists in the country has left several distraught families stranded. The situation has resulted in the delay of conducting post-mortems. Grieving families are forced to wait much longer before burying their loved ones. One family had to have a funeral service without the..
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Blood pressure medicine recalled due to cancer risk – but the regulator took three weeks to act

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A drug to treat high blood pressure for almost 12‚500 South Africans is being recalled after the active ingredient was shown to be contaminated by a potentially cancer-causing chemical.

The recall‚ however‚ comes almost three weeks after the drug was removed from shelves in Europe‚ the UK and the USA because the Chinese manufactured active ingredient was contaminated. The regulator‚ South African Health Products Authority (SAHPRA)‚ did not answer TimesLIVE queries about why it took so long to recall it here.

The drugs being removed from pharmacy shelves are Dynaval Co 80/12‚5mg‚ Dynaval Co 160/12‚5mg and Dynaval Co 160/25mg. They are manufactured by Cape Town-based Pharma Dynamics.

Dynaval is used to treat high blood pressure and heart failure‚ or is given to patients who have had recent heart attacks.

But SAHPRA has warned patients that it is far more dangerous to stop taking blood pressure medicine and risk having a stroke than it is t
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Resident allegedly turned away from clinic because she’s ‘white’

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The metro has denied claims that Yolanda Ferencak’s children were turned away from Birchleigh North Clinic because they are white.

“The acting manager interviewed all the personnel at Birchleigh North Clinic. They indicated that none of them saw or sent away any patient or referred them to Birchleigh Clinic,” said Themba Gadebe, the metro’s spokesperson.

Ferencak from Terenure told Express that her 25-year-old daughter had taken her 11-month-old boy for immunisation injections at the clinic on July 4 when they were allegedly denied service.

“When my daughter got to the clinic she said a woman told her they did not assist white people and that it was a blacks-only clinic,” said Ferencak.

“Because they needed to go to a clinic, they then went to Birchleigh Clinic where they were assisted and a file for the baby was opened.”

“Racial preference or remarks are not tolerated and serious actions will be taken, should it occur,” said Gadebe.
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Departement van Gesondheid het Kuba se hulp ingeroep met NGV

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Aaron Motsoaledi het aangekondig dat die Departement van Gesondheid gebruik gaan maak van die bykans 250 “dokters” wat sopas teruggekeer het vanuit Kuba na hul opleiding aldaar.

Hierdie pas afgestudeerde en nat agter die ore dokters sonder enige ondervinding, gaan nou glo help om die voorgestelde abortiewe Nasionale Gesondheid Versekering van die grond te kry.

Diegene wat nou terug keer moet, twee jaar hul “Ramahosa” diens verrig in staatshospitale, en sal nog ‘n jaar van studie aan ‘n SA universiteit moet doen voordat hulle gemeenskapswerk gaan verrig.

Kenners is skepties oor die “dokters” se opleiding en voel dat hul nie medies gaan studeer het nie maar bloot opleiding ontvang het van Kubaanse dokters. ‘n Paar jaar gelede het die studente die nuus gehaal met hul gefuifery en is sommiges terug gestuur.

Deur: Die Vryburger

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You are paying more for less when it comes to medical aid, does it make sense. Here’s why.

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What are your chances of ending up in a hospital? Higher than you’d think if you are a medical aid member in a large city — and the reason reveals some never-before-seen truths about the country’s private healthcare sector.

A lack of competition within the private healthcare market is fuelling an epidemic of overtreatment — and mystery medical bills — in South Africa, the Competition Commission revealed on Thursday.

As part of a four-year investigation into private healthcare costs, the Competition Commission looked at hospital admission rates among patients treated in nine specialised areas of medicine. People who had insurance and lived near more hospitals were more likely to be admitted than people with similar conditions that lived farther away from lots of empty beds, the statutory body found.

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Staatshospitale het ‘n te kort aan dokters – dit word nou ‘n krisis

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Die minister van gesondheid, Aaron Motsoaledi, het sy saak bepleit in ‘n verklaring waarin hy sê dat daar 14 onkologie apparate is wat elk R40 miljoen werd is, maar daar is geen spesialiste om die apparaat te gebruik nie.

Natal ondervind al maande lank ‘n probleem nie net met dokters nie, maar met mediese apparaat wat of stukkend of ondiensbaar is. Tans is daar een onkoloog in Natal in diens wat 1,3 miljoen kankerpasiënte moet behandel. Nou doen Motsoaledi ‘n beroep op privaat spesialiste om te kom help en die toerusting te gebruik.

Dit krap medici baie om omdat hy ‘n nuwe gesondheidstelsel te wil afdwing maar hy besef nie dat daar mediese personeel is wat die werk moet verrig nie. Kankerpasiënte moet tans in sekere hospitale tot vier maande wag voordat hul bestraling kan kry maar volgens die staat is dit nie “’n krisis” nie.

Deur: Die Vryburger

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Dr Aaron Motsoaledi is clueless – NHI cannot work in SA – to push ahead with it, is an act of desperation

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Plans by the Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, to push ahead with the National Health Insurance (NHI), is an act of desperation. It is a decision doomed to failure from the outset.

The minister is completely out of touch with the crisis in the South African public health system, and this was highlighted by his denial of a crisis despite the damning report from the commissioner of the Office of Health Standards Compliance (OHSC).

Recent presentations to the Portfolio Committee on Health by each of the provinces, the OHSC and the Auditor-General, painted a picture of a health system that has collapsed entirely. It is beyond a crisis, it has simply failed.

DA visits to hospitals and clinics around the country have exposed medicine shortages, equipment shortages and a severe shortage of beds. In most hospitals visited, infrastructure is collapsing and lack of maintenance in facilities is painfully obvious.

In Limpopo alone there is a backlog of 26 000 su
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